Spring supporting-ear for trolley-wires



'(No Model.)

- G. A. LIEB.

SPRING SUPPORTING EAR FOR TROLLBY WIRES.

N0. 553,858. Pltente'd Feb. 4, 1896.

\A/ITNEEEEE. INVENTEIR.

aft-m, I r

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES A. LIEB, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO THE GENERAL ELEC- TRICCOMPANY, OF NEWV YORK.

SPRING SUPPORTING-EAR FOR TROLLEY-WIRES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 553,858, dated February4;, 1896.

Application filed Tune 23, 1894. Serial No. 515,469. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, CHARLES ALIEB, a citizen of the United States, and aresident of New York, county of New York, and State of New York, haveinvented certain new and useful lmprovements in Spring Supporting- Earsfor Trolley-Wires, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to cars adapted to support the trolley-wire of anelectric railway in place, and has for its object to provide such an earwith a portion adapted to support the wire somewhat flexibly, forreasons pointed out hereinafter.

It has been found that when a bracket-arm is rigidly attached to a post,and the insulator with proper bolt-hole for the ordinary trolleyear isrigidly attached to the bracket-arm, the trolley in passing gives thearm a very sharp blow, which is communicated to the roof of the car,which is unpleasant for the passengers and injurious to the car, to thetrolley and to the overhead construction.

It is the object of my invention to provide a part of the trolley-earwith some degree of flexibility and to locate this portion directlybeneath the bolt which attaches the ear to the insulator. For the samereasonthat is, to provide some flexibility to the ear-I attach it by abolt about which its body portion may I rock in the direction of itslength, so that the blow which comes upon the part of the ear nearest tothe trolley, as it approaches, may also be slightly broken by theyielding of the ear about this bolt as a center. I have also found thatone side of the wire-supporting clip or sleeve of a trolley-ear wearsoff faster than the other when the ear is located upon a curve, and toobviate this difliculty I provide inthe wire-supporting part anincreased thickness upon one side, so that the ear may be adjusted withthat side on the inside of the curve to take the greater part of thewear. At

the same time the thicker side of the sleeve may be formed in theprocess of manufacture,

leaving the thinner side to be bent down over the wire to secure it inposition, by which this operation is greatly facilitated.

. sulator.

B is the bell or cap designed to prevent acoess of moisture to theparts.

0 is the supporting part or bolt portion of the trolley-ear providedwith the bolt 0, about which it may rock.

D is the bolt-hole. (Shown in dotted lines.)

E is the body of the ear.

F is a longitudinal slot cut in the body of the ear just above thesleeve and immediately below the bolt-hole.

G is the sleeve portion of the ear, and II is the trolley-wire.

The slot F may be of greater or less length, though I have found thatfor the purposes of my invention a length of ten or twelve inches isordinarily sufficient. A greater length than this is however desirable,if it can be readily obtained.

Referring nowto Figs. 2 and 3, G is the thinner side of thewire-supporting sleeve and G is its thicker side designed to be upon thepart of the curve Where the wear is greatest. As already explained, theportion (l is made into shape in the process of manufacture, and thetrolley-wire being inserted in the sleeve the part G is bent over it,which effectually secures it in place.

The construction described enables me to employ a standard trolley-earfor both spanwire and bracket-arm construction, if desired, the slot Fin the trolley-ear being of particular usefulness in the bracketconstruction,. and while not essential in the span-wire construction itis not objectionable, and may be readily employed.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of theUnited States, is

1. As a new article of manufacture, a trolley-ear comprising a boltportion adapted to secure the ear to the insulator, a body part, asleeve adapted to secure the trolley-wire in place and aslot in the bodypart between the sleeve and the bolt portion.

2. As a new article of manufacture, a trolley-ear comprising a, boltportion adapted to secure the ear to the insulator, a bolt therein, abody part rocking about the bolt, a sleeve adapted to secure thetrolley-wire in place and 10 a slot in the body part between the sleeveand the bolt portion.

In Witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 13th day of June,1894.

CHARLES A. LIEB. \Vitnesses:

C. J. AUSTIN, B. B. I-IULL.

